On September 28, 2016, professor Gerhard Stickel. President of the European Federation of National Institutions for Language (EFNIL) was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of the University of Latvia for significant contribution to the European language policy and for cooperation with the University of Latvia in the field of linguistics.

The Executive Committee of EFNIL had a live meeting on 17th May 2016 in Warsaw and discussed the details of the next EFNIL conference with local organisers. The meeting was hosted by Rada Języka Polskiego przy Prezydium Polskiej Akademii Nauk (Council for the Polish Language).

"MORE and more of the world is working in English. Multinational companies (even those based in places such as Switzerland or Japan) are making it their corporate language. And international bodies like the European Union and the United Nations are doing an ever-greater share of business in the world’s new default language. At the office, it’s English’s world, and every other language is just living in it. ..."

A new scheme to help reverse a sharp decline in foreign language learning in schools in Wales has been announced by four universities. Under the pilot project, Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff and Swansea undergraduates will be trained to coach school pupils on their language skills.

The new Executive Committee of EFNIL had its first live meeting on 10th December 2015 in Brussels. The meeting was hosted by the Nederlandse Taalunie and was held on the premises of the Brussels Office of the organisation. Acting as hosts, Ms Mieke Smits and Mr Kevin R. De Coninck gave an account of their activities and plans of their Unit. Participants in the ensuing friendly exchange confirmed their readiness for cooperation in the future.

"Despite government backing for the French ratification of the ECRML in a new legal text the Conseil d'Etat has decided to advise against ratification, discussed by Le Monde here.
Increasingly the whole issue of Charter ratification is becoming a distraction from the real issue of regional language endangerment, the loss of inter generational transmission, and the pressing need for 'regional' language acts to give each language coofficial status in its territory coupled with regional government competence for language regeneration and Breton, Corsican etc, medium education."
EUROLANG Facebook page

In a speech in February, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that foreign-language learning and the development of other skills not directly related to reading and math are "essentials, not luxuries" for public education. The contradiction here is of course stark: There are many new Americans who already speak a "foreign language" that would provide the US with greater international competitiveness in business and a useful edge in geopolitics, yet these students are hampered in developing those skills by state and national education policies. Without actively and continuously cultivating bilingual skills in bilingual students, they are limiting the U.S.A.'s language resources.

A student's chances of getting into a leading university to study languages
have increased in the past five years, as interest dwindles and applications
plummet, new figures suggest.
At Cambridge University, applications to study European languages dropped
from 580 in 2010 to 385 in 2014, meaning students now have a 44.2% chance of
getting a place compared with 28.4% in 2010.
At King's College London there were 1,165 applications and 150 acceptances in 2010, an acceptance rate of 12.9%. In 2014 there were 575 applications and 125 acceptances, taking the rate up to to 21.7%.

In the past 15 years there has been an overwhelming amount of research on the bilingual mind, with the majority of the evidence pointing to the tangible advantages of using more than one language. Going back and forth between languages appears to be a kind of brain training, pushing your brain to be flexible.

This document aims to clarify some of the key concepts and issues that surround the debate and presents in a simplified and synthetic form the many declarations and recommendations that have made reference to the issues of languages and education. These are stated as UNESCO guidelines and principles.

International Linguistics Conference in Lublin
Building on the success of the first two conferences, the Institute of English Studies at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, Poland, is organizing the 3rd meeting of Linguistics Beyond And Within - International Linguistics Conference in Lublin. The conference, to be held on 22-23 October 2015, will be hosted by the Department of Applied Linguistics, the Department of Theoretical Linguistics, and the Department of Contrastive English-Polish Studies. The language of the conference is English. This year the talks will be guided by the following leitmotif:
Mind, language, society: towards a unified theory of language structure and use
As previously, we would like to invite scholars with innovative approaches to linguistics viewed from a range of intra- and interdisciplinary perspectives. We wish to encourage all linguists representing various theoretical models and practical applications to present their contributions during both oral and poster sessions in the following research areas:
-- theoretical linguistics
- phonetics & phonology
- morphology
- semantics
- syntax
-- corpus studies
-- applied linguistics
- language teaching & language acquisition
- pragmatics
- discourse analysis
- translation studies
-- socio- and psycholinguistics
as well as during the following special sessions:
-- Slavic studies
-- Cognitive linguistics
Each paper presentation in an oral session will be scheduled for a 20-minute talk followed by a 10-minute discussion. Poster sessions will last about 40 minutes when the authors are required to be present and ready to answer questions from participants passing by. The poster format is 100x70cm (vertical orientation). The language of the conference is English.
Abstract submission
Abstracts of no more than 400 words (including references) should be sent by 30th June 2015 in .doc format to our e-mail address:
lingbaw@gmail.com. It is expected that any paper presented at LingBaW
2015 is original and has not been previously presented or published. In the body of the email, please include the following information: title of paper, name of author, scientific degree, affiliation, research area (one from the abovementioned) and form of presentation (speech / poster).
Abstracts will be reviewed anonymously. Please do not put your name on the abstract itself.
Notification of acceptance will be sent by 15th August.
Conference fee
The conference fee is 300 PLN (80 EUR) and includes conference materials, reception, refreshments and publication of the proceedings.
Proceedings
The preliminary deadline for submission of completed papers is 31st January 2016.
Further information
For more information and updates visit our website:
http://lingbaw.webclass.co/
Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at lingbaw@gmail.com

We are pleased to announce the Budapest Linguistics Conference, which will take place at Eötvös Loránd University from 18 to 20 June 2015.
The conference will be hosted by the Department of English Linguistics in the School of English and American Studies of ELTE and is sponsored by the Faculty of Humanities of ELTE and the Research Institute for Linguistics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
There will be no conference fee, but we do ask that if you intend to attend the conference you register by e-mail to newson@btk.elte.hu.
Invited speakers
- Marcel den Dikken
- Katalin É Kiss
Call for papers
We invite the submission of abstracts for talks (30 minutes) and posters on any area of theoretical or descriptive linguistics. For instructions on how to sybmit abstracts and relevant links, please see the submissions page.
Conference website: http://seas3.elte.hu/blinc/
Important dates
- Submission deadline: May 15
- Notification of acceptance: May 29
- Registration: June 12
- Conference dates: June 18-20
Accommodation
Accepted presenters of talks will be offered accommodation free of charge for 3 nights in a 1 star hotel. You are of course welcome to make your own accommodation arrangements. We are currently compiling a list of nearby hotels and will publish this information shortly.
Further information
For further information contact Mark Newson at newson@btk.elte.hu
http://seas3.elte.hu/blinc/

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/JME-12-2014-0044
Purpose
– This paper aims to outline the misguided underpinnings of the “word gap” concept promoted by Hart and Risley (1995). This concept posits that a “30 million word gap” between children of poverty and those from affluent households accounts for widespread academic disparities. Based on this premise, there has been a recent surge in educational programs that are based on a deficit view toward the language patterns of families from economically impoverished backgrounds.
Design/methodology/approach
– This paper is a discussion piece to debunk the “word gap” concept.
Findings
– Describing the language patterns of families in poverty as inferior is linguistically false and culturally insensitive. The aim of this paper is to explain why this is and suggest alternative approaches for supporting students who live in poverty.
Originality/value
– This paper is an original look at the so-called “language gap” and suggests strategies for helping students who might otherwise struggle to reach their potential.

International Journal of Linguistics and Communication is a quarterly, peer-reviewed international journal publishing articles that make a clear contribution to current debate in all branches of theoretical linguistics. The journal also provides an excellent survey of recent linguistics publications, with around thirty book reviews in each volume and regular review articles on major works marking important theoretical advances. The journal also concentrates on communication research, practice, policy, and theory, bringing to its readers the latest, broadest, and most important findings in the field of communication studies.
The journal is published by the American Research Institute for Policy Development that serves as a focal point for academicians, professionals, graduate and undergraduate students, fellows, and associates pursuing research throughout the world.
The interested contributors are highly encouraged to submit their manuscripts/papers to the executive editor via e-mail at editor@aripd.org. Please indicate the name of the journal (International Journal of Linguistics & Communication) in the cover letter or simply put ‘International Journal of Linguistics & Communication’ in the subject box during submission via e-mail.
The journal is Abstracted/Indexed in CrossRef, CrossCheck, Cabell's, Ulrich's, Griffith Research Online, Google Scholar, Education.edu, Informatics, Universe Digital Library, Standard Periodical Directory, Gale, Open J-Gate, EBSCO, Journal Seek, DRJI, ProQuest, BASE, InfoBase Index, OCLC, IBSS, Academic Journal Databases, Scientific Index.
E-Publication FirstTM
E-Publication FirstTM is a feature offered through our journal platform. It allows PDF version of manuscripts that have been peer reviewed and accepted, to be hosted online prior to their inclusion in a final printed journal. Readers can freely access or cite the article. The accepted papers are published online within one week after the completion of all necessary publishing steps.
DOI® number
Each paper published in International Journal of Linguistics & Communication is assigned a DOI® number, which appears beneath the author's affiliation in the published paper.
IJLC is inviting papers for Vol. 3, No. 1. The online publication date is June 30, 2015. Submission Deadline: May 20, 2015.
For any additional information, please contact with the executive editor at editor@aripd.org
Regards,
Dr. Lasisi Ajayi, San Diego State University, U.S.A.
Editor-in-Chief
International Journal of Linguistics & Communication
Website: www.ijlcnet.com

Terralingua works to sustain the biocultural diversity of life — the world’s precious heritage of biological, cultural, and linguistic diversity — through an innovative program of research, education, policy-relevant work, and on-the-ground action.
Our Vision
A just, equitable, sustainable world in which the biocultural diversity of life is valued, protected, and perpetuated for generations to come.
Our Goal
To bring about a profound shift in human values through a deeper understanding and appreciation of the vital importance of biocultural diversity for the survival of all life on earth, so that individual and collective action is taken to care for it and sustain it in this rapidly changing world.
Our Strategy
Terralingua develops and deploys its expertise and insights on issues relating to biocultural diversity in international fora, through publications, public education, fieldwork and policy development, and by enrolling and informing a membership base.
More information:
http://www.terralingua.org/about-2/our-mission/

The Ecolinguistics Association is a network of 350 researchers from around the world who share ideas, opinions and articles about ecolinguistics. Ecolinguistics examines the influence of language on the life-sustaining relationships of humans with each other, with other organisms and with the natural environment. Research ranges from the impact of advertising discourse in encouraging ecologically damaging consumption to the power of nature poetry to encourage respect for the natural world.
More information:
http://www.ecoling.net/

The increasing use of English in Europe has a major impact on the use of national languages at the work place in European companies. To deal with the problem, the French Ministry of Culture and Communication in France (Délégation générale à la langue française et aux langues de France) has recently published a "Guide to good corporate language practice". It is intended for companies established in France operating at the international level and wishing to match the use of French with the requirements of global communication.
It offers examples of good practice on all language related issues in businesses such as the management of language skills of employees, internal and external communication, multilingual websites and intranet sites, translation issues. You will find the French and English versions in attachment, or with the link : http://www.culturecommunication.gouv.fr/Politiques-ministerielles/Langue-francaise-et-langues-de-France/Politiques-de-la-langue/Guide-des-bonnes-pratiques-linguistiques-dans-les-entreprises
An online self-diagnostic tool enabling companies to assess their language practices has been developed from this guide (soon on www.francaisautravail.org).
We wish this can be seen as a contribution to multilingualism in Europe and can be of relevance in similar linguistic national contexts in Europe. In this perspective, we wish to circulate this guide outside France. You will receive in the coming days a few brochures both in French and in English.
We will be pleased to give you more information.
With many thanks and our best regards,
Joséphine Pasco
--
Joséphine Pasco
Chargée de la diffusion du "Guide des bonnes pratiques linguistiques dans les entreprises"
Délégation générale à la langue française et aux langues de France
Ministère de la culture et de la communication
01 40 15 35 32
www.dglflf.culture.gouv.fr

As one MEP takes to holding a 'language strike', the EU's promise of promoting language diversity has come under renewed scrutiny.In the late 1950s there were four official EU languages, today there are 24 but figures provided by the European commission reveal that 40 million people in the EU speak 60 indigenous regional or minority languages.
While language policy is a member state competence, the European commission "helps fund projects and partnerships designed to raise awareness of minority languages, promote their teaching and learning, and thereby help them survive".
The commitment to language and cultural diversity is enshrined in the European treaties and was further enhanced by the Lisbon treaty when respect for linguistic minorities became legally binding.

Action Research to Improve Youth and Adult Literacy: Empowering Learners in a Multilingual World
Edited by Hassana Alidou and Christine Glanz
With this guidebook we would like to highlight the importance of multilingual and multicultural contexts for youth and adult literacy. Research and practice are leading the way, and the Post-2015 Agenda to follow the global Education for All
initiative emphasizes the importance of culture. Culture gives languages, oral or written, a prominent place as a key means of communication and voice.
Full text:
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002322/232243e.pdf

Dear Colleagues,
As co-editor of book reviews for Language Policy, I am currently seeking reviewers for the books listed below. If you are interested, please contact me directly at <mailto:smoore@cal.org> smoore@cal.org indicating the title and your preferred mailing address.
Reviews should be no longer than 1,000 words in length and are generally due no more than 3 months after receipt of the book. Editorial guidelines and more details about the journal can be found at: <http://www.springer.com/education+%26+language/linguistics/journal/10993>; http://www.springer.com/education+%26+language/linguistics/journal/10993
Please also note our policy of only one review per person per year. If you have written a review for us recently, kindly hold off this time.
Thank you and best wishes,
Sarah C. K. Moore
Books for Review:
Liddicoat, A. J. (2013). Language-in-education policies. The Discursive Construction of Intercultural Relations. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Olthuis, M.-L., KivelĂ¤, S. and Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (2013). Revitalising Indigenous Languages: How to Recreate a Lost Generation. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Orelus, P. (ed.). (2013). <http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415824828/>; Affirming language diversity in schools and society. New York: Routledge.
Sarah Catherine K. Moore, Ph.D.
Program Director
Center for Applied Linguistics
4646 40th St. NW
Washington, DC 20016
202-355-1546
smoore@cal.org

The Modern Language Association (MLA) published a new report on the state of language education at the post-secondary level. The report, Enrollments in Languages Other than English in United States Institutions of Higher Education, covers enrollments in 2013 at 2,696 institutions. The MLA’s has gathered and analyzed data on world language enrollments since 1958, with recent reports showing enrollments in 2009, 2006, and 2002. This year’s findings are a mixture of good news and bad news for language departments at U.S. colleges and universities...
Full story:
http://languagemagazine.com/?page_id=123074

15-16 Oct 2015
Trondheim, Norway
This conference is associated with the project Linguistic Complexity in the Individual and Society (LCIS; http://www.ntnu.edu/lcis) at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim. The goal of LCIS is to study linguistic complexity in three different areas:
formal grammar, language acquisition, and sociolinguistics. The groundbreaking part of this project is that it will attempt to combine these different sub-disciplines of modern linguistics. Different methodologies and theoretical perspectives will be useful in order to illuminate complementary aspects of language complexity and thus contribute to deepening our understanding of this phenomenon. A unifying aspect of the research is the use of multilingual data. These data have become increasingly important for linguistic methodologies and theories, but also for public policy makers in the sense that they address consequences of migration and children growing up acquiring parts of multiple languages.
The present two-day conference on October 15-16, 2015 will feature talks addressing linguistic complexity within the three areas mentioned above:
formal grammar, language acquisition, and sociolinguistics. The following speakers have kindly agreed to provide plenary addresses:
Artemis Alexiadou (University of Stuttgart) Frans Gregersen (Copenhagen University, Lanchart)) Liliane Haegeman (Ghent University) Marie Maegaard & Janus Spindler Moller (Copenhagen University, Lanchart) Ianthi Tsimpli (University of Reading/Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)
Call for Papers:
Abstracts are solicited for 20 minute talks plus 10 minutes for questions. Abstracts should be at most 2 pages written in Times New Roman, 12pt font, on A4 or letter paper. Numbered examples should be included in the text and not added separately at the end.
Abstracts need to be submitted by midnight (CET) on April 24, 2015 via
EasyAbs: http://linguistlist.org/easyabs/lcis.
Notifications of acceptance will be sent out by May 20, 2015.
Conference website: http://www.ntnu.edu/web/lcis/conference

The Faculty of Arts at the University of Ljubljana is pleased to announce that the 8th Syntax, Phonology and Language Analysis conference (SinFonIJA 8) will take place in Ljubljana, Slovenia, from 24-26 September 2015. SinFonIJA is a formal linguistics conference organized each year by a different institution in the area of former Yugoslavia and Austria-Hungary. The theme of the SinFonIJA conference is wide and spans all areas of formal linguistics.
The conference will be preceded (on 23 September) by a workshop for MA and PhD students.
Invited Speakers
Zeljko Boskovic, University of Connecticut, USA Guglielmo Cinque, University of Venice, Italy Peter Jurgec, University of Toronto, Canada Penka Stateva, University of Nova Gorica, Slovenia
Invited Student Speaker
Marko Hladnik, Utrecht University, the Netherlands
Abstracts are invited from all areas of theoretical linguistics, including phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, psycholinguistics and historical linguistics. Submissions from other areas of linguistics will also be considered, provided that the theoretical significance of the paper is clearly demonstrated in the abstract.
We invite abstracts for either a 25 minute oral presentation, followed by 10 minutes of discussion, or a poster presentation.
Deadline for abstract submission: April 15, 2015
Local Organizers
Tatjana Marvin, Franja Lipovsek, Gasper Ilc, Andrej Stopar (Department of Comparative and General Linguistics and Department of English, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana)
For more information, visit the conference website:
http://www.anglistika.net/sinfonija

The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee of the United States Senate has released a draft of the new Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which drops the Foreign Language Assistance Act entirely and does not contain any provisions for world languages. The Senate Committee is currently accepting public comment at the email address FixingNCLB@help.senate.gov.
The Foreign Language Assistance Act was initiated in 2001 as a part of No Child Left Behind and provides grants to state or local education agencies to fund half the yearly costs of establishing or expanding foreign language programs in elementary and secondary schools. Only about 25% of elementary schools and 58% of middle schools have foreign language programs. As the most critical ages in language learning are between 1 and 7 years old, support for elementary world language programs is important to incentivize.
Mary Kusler, the director of government relations for the National Education Association, said, “We can strongly say that this [draft] is a starting point from which we can all begin discussions. We need to ensure there are the appropriate safeguards by the federal government to ensure all students are receiving a 21st century education regardless of their zip code. But we are pleased to see measures that increase the flexibility of educators and their districts to meet the needs of their individual students, especially those with the greatest needs.” To bring language learning into the conversation send an email insisting on high-quality world language programs to FixingNCLB@help.senate.gov.
For a comprehensive email template, click here:
http://languagemagazine.com/?page_id=123209

The United Nations is one of the world's largest employers of language professionals. Several hundred language professionals work for the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM) in New York, Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi. Many more are hired by the regional commissions of the United Nations in Addis Ababa, Bangkok, Beirut and Santiago. At the United Nations, the term "language professional" applies to
a range of specialized and interrelated occupations, mainly interpreters, translators, editors, verbatim reporters, terminologists, reference assistants, copy preparers and proofreaders.

The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee of the United States Senate has released a draft of the new Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which drops the Foreign Language Assistance Act entirely and does not contain any provisions for world languages. The Senate Committee is currently accepting public comment at the email address FixingNCLB@help.senate.gov.
The Foreign Language Assistance Act was initiated in 2001 as a part of No Child Left Behind and provides grants to state or local education agencies to fund half the yearly costs of establishing or expanding foreign language programs in elementary and secondary schools. Only about 25% of elementary schools and 58% of middle schools have foreign language programs. As the most critical ages in language learning are between 1 and 7 years old, support for elementary world language programs is important to incentivize.
Mary Kusler, the director of government relations for the National Education Association, said, âWe can strongly say that this [draft] is a starting point from which we can all begin discussions. We need to ensure there are the appropriate safeguards by the federal government to ensure all students are receiving a 21st century education regardless of their zip code. But we are pleased to see measures that increase the flexibility of educators and their districts to meet the needs of their individual students, especially those with the greatest needs.To bring language learning into the conversation send an email insisting on high-quality world language programs to FixingNCLB@help.senate.gov.

Sadly, on Sunday, 1st March, the world famous sociolinguist Joshua Fishman passed away. To commemorate his life, a series of YouTube videos of an interview with him at the Trace Foundation, discussing minority languages and corpus planning, has been made. It can be found at the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4actLHRLC4&list=PLBD228921EC37AE32.
Also, please note that two volumes published in conjunction with the celebration of Joshua Fishman's 80th birthday are the following:
Language Loyalty, Language Planning, and Language Revitalization: Recent Writings and Reflections from Joshua A. Fishman, ed. by Nancy H. Hornberger & Martin Pütz http://www.multilingual-matters.com/display.asp?K=9781853599019
Language Loyalty, Continuity, and Change: Joshua A. Fishman's Contributions to International Sociolinguistics, by Ofelia García, Rakhmiel Peltz, and Harold F. Schiffman http://www.multilingual-matters.com/display.asp?K=9781853599026
Finally note that at the following link you can find a guide to the Joshua A. Fishman Papers at the Department of Special Collections and University Archives Stanford University Libraries http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt4k4025n4/entire_text/

Please find below an invitation by the LiMe project team to attend their project conference on teaching second langagues (with special interest in the application of media and ICT to help the European-wide migrant population develop language and cultural competences) that will take place on March 17th in Caceres, Spain. You are also invited to take part in the poster presentation until February 23rd - please see below.

At the core of this Call for submissions for the ECML programme 2016 - 2019 lie the interrelationship between quality education and quality language education. Language is at the root of all learning: all teachers, irrespective of sector or subject area, have a role to play in developing the linguistic and intercultural repertoires of their learners. This is reflected in the title: LANGUAGES AT THE HEART OF LEARNING.
This Call builds on the expertise, networks and most successful outputs of the past 20 years of ECML operation in both Europe and beyond. It aims to take the underlying principles of the current programme 2012-15 to the next level of innovative development and practical implementation in a wide range of European language-learning environments with the ultimate goal of improving access to quality education for all.

The UN's International Mother Language Day is marked every 21 February to promote linguistic and cultural diversity around the world. Diversity is the bedrock of Europe's cultural heritage, so the EU is keen to also protect linguistic diversity. The EU boast 24 official languages, but how many of them can you recognise? Try our quiz to find out.
The EU's most widely spoken mother tongues are: German (16%), Italian and English (13% each), French (12%), Spanish and Polish (8% each). More than 60 regional and minority languages are spoken in the EU. The EP called for the protection of endangered languages and linguistic diversity in a resolution adopted in September 2013
Linguistic diversity in the EP
MEPs have the right to use any of the official languages when speaking in the EP, while all parliamentary documents such as reports and legislation, are published in all official languages of the EU. In addition anyone living in the EU can contact all EU institutions in any of the EU's official languages and receive a reply in the same language.
The Parliament's website is also available in all 24 official languages and it also offers Twitter accounts in all of them.
Try our quiz and see in how many EU languages you recognise the word “tongue”.

Overall enrollment in foreign language courses is down for the first time since about 1995, and enrollments in major European languages -- including Spanish -- are way down, according to a new report from the Modern Language Association. Language advocates aren’t sure what’s caused the drop, and say it’s too soon to tell whether it’s a fluke or the beginning of a new trend away from foreign language study. But they’re calling for a renewed effort in helping students see the value in upper-division language classes, which could be helpful to them in their careers.

The organisers are pleased to announce that the ninth CLS event will take place on Saturday, 18 April 2015 at Oxford Brookes University.
Twenty years after the publication of the seminal paper by Hardt-Mautner (1995), the use of computer-aided methods and increasingly large corpora to analyse issues at the discourse/society interface is well established. The aim of this workshop is to invite exploration and discussion of the key methodological, theoretical and practical issues in this burgeoning field.
In particular, they welcome proposals for papers that:
• conceptually examine the issues raised in employing automated procedures for the analysis of social semiotic issues. Does it remain true that the ‘historical knowledge and sensitivity’ required for critical interpretation ‘can be possessed by human beings but not by machines’ (Fowler 1991: 68)?
• discuss innovations in methods and techniques (of annotation, classification, inference, etc.) that have enhanced the possibilities for critical analyses of language and discourse. How far have we moved fromFowler and Kress's (1979: 197) assertion that ‘there is no analytic routine through which a text can be run with a critical description issuing automatically at the end’?
• present specific cases of corpus-based critical studies of discourse, reflecting on the advantages and limitations of the approach
Presentations should be 30 minutes in length, and will be followed by 15 minutes for discussion. Please send your abstract to alischinsky@brookes.ac.uk by 14th March 2015. Acceptance of submitted abstracts will be notified by the end of March.
In keeping with prior Corpus Linguistics in the South events, participation in the workshop is free. Please be aware that the number of places is limited, and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

Announced by UNESCO in 1999, International Mother Language Day celebrates cultural diversity and commemorates the “language martyr” students of 1952 Bangladesh. These students are honoured for their encouragement of multiculturalism and the promotion of protective measures for endangered languages. It’s hard to imagine the challenges faced by students who have been ordered to learn in a foreign language because without linguistic inclusion, there is no equal access to education. Current International Mother Language Day events include multicultural festivals where many languages and voices are heard. Aiming at social cohesion, cultural awareness, and tolerance, communication which connects individuals to culture and personal identity are valued and encouraged.

Website: http://hollt.net
Background: AILA - L'Association Internationale de Linguistique Appliquée or International Association of Applied Linguistics http://www.aila.info/en/about.html) - has a changing portfolio of Research Networks (ReNs). They are approved for three years, are renewable once, and are not generally expected to last for longer than six years. They receive no financial support from AILA, nor can they charge for membership, in other words they have no budget of their own for activities. All ReNs are required to organize a symposium at the AILA Congress, which happens every three years (the next one is in Rio de Janeiro, in 2017). Beyond this, the Research Networks are largely autonomous and decide on their own activities.
In January 2015 the AILA Research Network committee approved a proposal submitted by Giovanni Iamartino (Milan), Friederike Klippel (Munich), Nicola McLelland (Nottingham) and Richard Smith (Warwick) to found a Research Network for the History of Language Learning and Teaching (HoLLT). This AILA Research Network can be seen as the extension of an AHRC-funded network project (2012-2014) coordinated by Nicola McLelland and Richard Smith. The principal activities of the previous project consisted of two workshops (December 2012 in Nottingham and June 2013 at Warwick, both in the UK) and an international conference in Nottingham in July 2014. For further details of these past events and associated publications see the project's website. At the 2013 Warwick meeting, representatives of a number of existing national and language-based associations (APHELLE, CIRSIL, the Henry Sweet Society, PHG, SEHEL and SIHFLES) agreed that a further intensification and internationalization of networking would be desirable.
Emerging from this background, the AILA Research Network for the History of Language Learning and Teaching is intended to provide a forum which existing national and language-based associations (see 'Links' tab on the website) can take advantage of to communicate with one another and build research collaborations, and which can provide them with additional publicity, thus helping to strengthen them. At the same time, a major function of the Research Network is to serve individual researchers interested in the history of language learning and teaching for whom no dedicated national or language-based association currently exists.
To join: HoLLT.net (The AILA Research Network for the History of Language Learning and Teaching) is free to join for all interested researchers! Please see the 'Join' tab on the website.

UMR 7309 Laboratoire Parole et Langage (Université d’Aix-Marseille), in association with the Département de français langue étrangère (Pôle LLC, UFR ALLSHS, Université d’Aix- Marseille), is pleased to announce that it will host EUROSLA 25, the 25th Annual Conference of the European Second Language Association. The general theme of the Conference is « Second Language Acquisition : Implications for language sciences”. You are kindly invited to submit abstracts for papers, posters, thematic colloquia and doctoral workshop related to this theme or to any other domain and subdomain of second language research.
The Conference will start in the morning of 27 August 2015 and close at 12 a.m on 29 August 2015. Preceding the Conference, there will be a doctoral workshop and a Language Learning roundtable, both on 26 August 2015. The theme of this year’s roundtable is ‘SLA and theories of pidginization / creolization’.
Plenary speakers
- Camilla BARDEL (Stockholm University)
- Sandra BENAZZO (Université Paris 8)
- Christine DIMROTH (Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster)
- Scott H. JARVIS (Ohio University)
- Gabriele PALLOTI (Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia (UNIMORE))
Key dates:
- 1 February 2015: Early bird registration starts
- 27 February 2015: Abstract submission deadline
- 24 April 2015: Notification of acceptance
- 1 June 2015: Full fee registration starts
- 18 July 2015: End of registration

Announced by UNESCO in 1999, International Mother Language Day celebrates cultural diversity and commemorates the “language martyr” students of 1952 Bangladesh. These students are honoured for their encouragement of multiculturalism and the promotion of protective measures for endangered languages. It’s hard to imagine the challenges faced by students who have been ordered to learn in a foreign language because without linguistic inclusion, there is no equal access to education. Current International Mother Language Day events include multicultural festivals where many languages and voices are heard. Aiming at social cohesion, cultural awareness, and tolerance, communication which connects individuals to culture and personal identity are valued and encouraged.

The summer school will take place in Cologne, Germany, from 13th to 17th July 2015.
TSS is a practice-oriented 5-day training course on terminology management. It addresses language professionals (translators, terminologists, localization experts, etc.), students and scientists who look for a
comprehensive, state-of-the-art introduction to terminology theory and practice.
Reserve your place at the TSS 2015 today. You may register until early June 2015. However, places are limited, so we advise you wait not too long:
<http://www.termnet.org/english/events/tss_2015/index.php>;
http://www.termnet.org/english/events/tss_2015/index.php
PROGRAM:
UNDERSTANDING TERMINOLOGY MANAGEMENT
. Introduction to Terminology Work
. Applied Principles of Terminology Work
. Retrieving and Validating Relevant Online Information for Terminology Work
TERMINOLOGY MANAGEMENT SKILLS
. Data Modelling: Data Categories for Terminology Management
. Creating a Terminology Database
. Terminology Tools - A closer look at Terminology Management Systems
. Terminology Workflows and Interfaces
TERMINOLOGY STRATEGIES FOR BUSINESS PROCESSES
. Three "P"s in Terminology Management: Project, Product, Process
. Case Studies: Terminology and Technical Documentation
. Case Studies: Legal Translation and Terminology
STANDARDS AND LEGAL ISSUES FOR TERMINOLOGY WORK
. Terminology Work for Literary Translation
. Terminology and other Knowledge Organization Systems
. Standards for Terminology Work
. Copyright Issues for Terminology Management
INSTRUCTORS:
International renowned experts in terminology and terminology management will cover the TSS topics but also take time to help participants with the most individual questions and problems during the whole week.
ECQA CERTIFICATION FOR TERMINOLOGY MANAGERS:
The TSS2015 program was developed in cooperation with the ECQA initiative and this allows TSS2015 participants to obtain the ECQA Certificate for Terminology Managers by taking the official ECQA exam for the job title of
Certified Terminology Manager - Basic or Certified Terminology Manager - Advanced.
SOCIAL NETWORKING AND SIDE EVENTS:
TSS gives the participants the opportunity to network and discuss in a relaxed and resourceful environment with peers and colleagues during the side events planned for this purpose. Enjoy the Terminology Breakfasts every
morning before classes, participate in the "Get to know each other" Event on Monday after the first day of classes. Meet your colleagues in the different "after school" events during the week.
You can find all information about TSS2015 at:
<http://www.termnet.org/english/events/tss_2015/index.php>;
http://www.termnet.org/english/events/tss_2015/index.php
(this website will be constantly updated in the next months with more and more information)
or contact them ( <mailto:events@termnet.org> events@termnet.org).

Overall enrollment in foreign language courses is down for the first time since about 1995, and enrollments in major European languages -- including Spanish -- are way down, according to a new report from the Modern Language Association. Language advocates aren’t sure what’s caused the drop, and say it’s too soon to tell whether it’s a fluke or the beginning of a new trend away from foreign language study. But they’re calling for a renewed effort in helping students see the value in upper-division language classes, which could be helpful to them in their careers.

Telč, Czech Republic
June 8th-12th 2015
Lexicom is a five-day intensive workshop created by the Lexicography MasterClass. Seminars on theoretical issues alternate with hands-on work at the computer. Working in small groups or individually, you will learn how to create dictionaries and other lexical resources, from the preparation of corpora to the planning, design and writing of entries. This is the workshop's fifteenth year and we now have over 380 graduates, from all parts of the world: reviews of previous events can be found here.
It will be led by Michael Rundell, Miloš Jakubíček, Adam Kilgarriff and Vojtěch Kovář
For more details and registration form see http://www.lexmasterclass.com/lexicom-telc-2015/
Milos Jakubicek
CEO, Lexical Computing
Brighton, UK | Brno, CZ
http://www.lexicalcomputing.com
http://www.sketchengine.co.uk

ACED-17
UNIVERSITY OF BUCHAREST, ROMANIA
The English Department of the University of Bucharest will hold its 17th Annual Conference
from 4-6 June, 2015.
This year our invited speakers are:
ALESSANDRA GIORGI - University of Venice GIULIANA GIUSTI - University of Venice
Papers are invited in:
General Linguistics
Linguistic Theories
Theoretical Linguistics (syntax, phonology, semantics and the interfaces) Language acquisition Applied Linguistics
Presentations should be in English, and will be allocated 25 minutes each, plus 5 minutes for discussion. Prospective participants are invited to submit anonymous abstracts in both Word and Pdf formats.
Proposals should be one A4 page (plus an additional page for examples and references), Times New Roman 12, single spaced. Please include name, affiliation and title in the body of your message.
Conference fee: 50 euro (or equivalent in Romanian Lei) (covering lunches and refreshments during the conference, but not
eveningmeals)
Deadline for proposals: 15 March 2015
Notification of acceptance: 15 April 2015
Please send proposals (and enquiries) to the following e-mail address:
17.ACED@gmail.com
Website:
http://www.unibuc.ro/depts/limbi/literatura_engleza/conferinte.php
(scroll down)

At the core of this Call for submissions for the ECML programme 2016 - 2019 lie the interrelationship between quality education and quality language education. Language is at the root of all learning: all teachers, irrespective of sector or subject area, have a role to play in developing the linguistic and intercultural repertoires of their learners. This is reflected in the title:
LANGUAGES AT THE HEART OF LEARNING.
This Call builds on the expertise, networks and most successful outputs of the past 20 years of ECML operation in both Europe and beyond. It aims to take the underlying principles of the current programme 2012-15 to the next level of innovative development and practical implementation in a wide range of European language-learning environments with the ultimate goal of improving access to quality education for all.

Telč, Czech Republic
June 8th-12th 2015
Lexicom is a five-day intensive workshop created by the Lexicography MasterClass. Seminars on theoretical issues alternate with hands-on work at the computer. Working in small groups or individually, you will learn how to create dictionaries and other lexical resources, from the preparation of corpora to the planning, design and writing of entries. This is the workshop's fifteenth year and we now have over 380 graduates, from all parts of the world: reviews of previous events can be found here.
It will be led by Michael Rundell, Miloš Jakubíček, Adam Kilgarriff and Vojtěch Kovář
For more details and registration form see http://www.lexmasterclass.com/lexicom-telc-2015/
Milos Jakubicek
CEO, Lexical Computing
Brighton, UK | Brno, CZ
http://www.lexicalcomputing.com
http://www.sketchengine.co.uk

The conference will take place in Rhodes / Greece, on May 28-31, 2015, organized by the University of Toronto / Canada and the University of the Aegean/Greece in collaboration with the University of Crete / Greece.
This gathering will bring together emerging and established researchers around the practices and policies of language diversity in education with representatives of school boards, teacher associations, policy makers, community leaders, teachers, and school administrators to engage issues of linguistic and cultural diversity that have created a new ground for teaching and learning.
A rethinking of the pedagogical imperatives of language, diversity, and education in communal and global contexts will enable new directions with respect to the question of difference, social justice and pedagogy in this millennium.
The conference will be honoring the contributions of Jim Cummins (University of Toronto) and Michalis Damanakis (University of Crete)
Suggested areas of rethinking:
The Geography of Language Diversity: Countries & Institutions
The people and their languages in context: Heritage Languages, Languages in Diaspora, Immigrant/ Minority / Indigenous Languages
Concepts & Tools: e.g. Tansformation, Translanguaging, Continua of Biliteracy…
Mainstream, Language Norm and Diversity, Mainstream Diversity
Bilingualism and Literacy / Biliteracy / Biliteracies / Multiliteracies
Language Contexts, e-Contexts and Hybrid Contexts
Language Diversity in action: Good Practices
Pedagogical Orientations, Nested Pedagogies
Language Diversity & Identity issues / Texts
New Research Agenda
Technology and Language Diversity
Literacy and Technology
Website is open for abstracts:
http://rlde.aegean.gr/ocs/index.php/RLDE/RLDE
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rethinking-Language-Diversity-and-Education-Conference/1475172606090162?fref=ts
Important dates:
Abstracts: March 15th, 2015
Paper submission: April 15th 2015

RUKUM, JAN 14 - The use of students’ native language during teaching as adopted by schools in Kakri VDC in the district has proved effective as the number of students enrolling in the school has increased by 40 percent with cent percent attendance. According to the District Education Office (DEO), the use of native language has not only proved effective but also helped increase the quality of education.

2-5 September 2015
Leiden University Centre for Linguistics (LUCL), Leiden
http://www.sle2015.eu
http://www.societaslinguistica.eu
The Societas Linguistica Europaea and the University of Leiden invite
you to submit abstracts for workshop, poster or general session papers
for the next annual meeting.
SLE meetings provide a forum for high-quality linguistic research from
all (sub)domains of linguistics. The upcoming edition of the SLE meeting
will also host a round table of experts to discuss topics of special
linguistic interest. The SLE 2015 round table bears the title
'Interaction and Linguistic Structure'.
The deadline for all abstracts is 15 January 2015. Notification of
acceptance/rejection will be by 31 March 2014.
PLENARY SPEAKERS
Marianne Mithun (University of California at Santa Barbara, presidential
address)
Marian Klamer (Leiden University)
Ian Roberts (University of Cambridge)
Round Table 'Interaction and Linguistic Structure':
Mira Ariel (Tel Aviv University)
Riccardo Fusaroli (Aarhus University)
To see the list of workshops and all other details, please visit the
conference website:
http://sle2015.eu

Host Institution: Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona
Dates: 14 Sep 2015 - 17 Sep 2015
Location: Barcelona, Spain
Email address for information: bilingualism.school@upf.edu
The aim of the BSBM is to bring together prominent experts in the field who represent different disciplinary approaches and will discuss the latest research on bilingualism and multilingualism. The school is intended for postgraduate students (MA and PhD), researchers and instructors who are interested in a state of the art review of the field.
The five modules will be taught by
Lera Boroditsky (University of California, Santa Barbara) Annick de Houwer (University of Erfurt) Istvan Kecskés (State University of New York, Albany) Agnes Kovacs (Central European University) Maria Polinsky (Harvard University)
Each presenter will teach a 4-hour module with breaks on the same day.
On Tuesday (Sept. 15) there will be a morning and an afternoon module.
BSBM contains a presentation module directed by Dr. Albert Costa for prospective participants. There will be a workshop held on Thursday afternoon (September 17th) where selected participants will present their research. Who wishes to participate should send an abstract to the organizers through email to the address below. Abstracts should contain no more than 300 words describing the research project. Submissions of abstracts start on January 20th, 2015 and finish on March 20th.
Notification of acceptance will be sent on April 1st.
WEBSITE: under construction
EMAIL: bilingualism.school@upf.edu
Contact persons: Eloi Puig-Mayenco, Jennifer Ament
Location:
Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Campus de Poblenou
Barcelona, Spain
Prices:
- Tuition: 180 Euros
Information on accommodation will be available on the website soon.
For more information please contact: bilingualism.school@upf.edu
Registration: Jan 20 to July 30, 2015

We are happy to announce the official launch of the Call for submissions for the ECML’s 2016-19 programme, “Languages at the heart of learning”. The Call was developed in close collaboration with yourselves and with national authorities in ECML member states. ECML believes that the Call represents an accurate reflection of current priorities in language education across our member states.
All information related to the Call and the new programme is now available on the dedicated website: http://call.ecml.at/. Printed flyers and a limited number of printed brochures will be available early in the New Year. The deadline for submissions to the Call is 1 May 2015.

Speak or write in English, and the world will hear you. Speak or write in Tamil or Portuguese, and you may have a harder time getting your message out. Now, a new method for mapping how information flows around the globe identifies the best languages to spread your ideas far and wide. One hint: If you’re considering a second language, try Spanish instead of Chinese.

The slovake.eu is particularly useful for foreigners living in Slovakia, partners in mixed marriages, inhabitants of the border regions, ethnic Slovaks abroad, specialist in Slavist studies, immigrants, students, tourists.
The varied content available on the site, such as media library, tests, explanation of grammar is constantly developing.
The website was initially available in five languages, by now six more languages has been added. This project is supported by the European Commission as part of the KA2 – Languages – Lifelong Learning Programme.